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Matt Graves Special user Huntsville, Alabama (USA) 504 Posts |
I've had lots of ideas for magic that has a dark or sad theme to it; I was reading a book by Eugene Burger (Growing In The Art Of Magic) where he said that Dolly Parton could put you through more emotional changes than the average magician. He said it would be beautiful if an effect could make someone cry. I'm just afraid to actually present any of those, because they might disturb people too much. Yet in a way it is strange that magic is usually all for laughs . . . I was just wondering if anybody else had an opinion on that . . . it's something I'm really turning over in my mind right now.
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Burt Yaroch Inner circle Dallas,TX 1097 Posts |
I don't know that magic puts folks in the proper state of mind to be sad. I think the expectations they bring with them might make it difficult for you to bring them down.
Unless you start doing funeral magic or something like that. Or you could always just do Twisting the Aces and punch them in the eye when you're done.
Yakworld.
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Philemon Vanderbeck Inner circle Seattle, WA 4694 Posts |
Good entertainment is all about evoking emotions.
There is certainly place for a sad or dark piece in a routine. However, I suggest that you frame it with contrasting effects. Not only do you make the dark/sad effect stand out more, but you'll also have the opportunity to end your show on a positive note.
Professor Philemon Vanderbeck
That Creepy Magician "I use my sixth sense to create the illusion of possessing the other five." |
Paul Inner circle A good lecturer at your service! 4409 Posts |
I personally think magic should leave people feeling uplifted. I would rather people recall happy moments, than think back to a time in my act that I made them feel sad.
Some magic acts make people feel sad anyway Great to make someone cry with your magic? Unless it's tears of laughter, I don't think so. I also don't agree that magic is usually all for laughs. Paul Hallas |
Matt Graves Special user Huntsville, Alabama (USA) 504 Posts |
Well, actually, what I was thinking about was something themed around death, and how there might be a greater reason for the death of someone you love, that you can't see, like maybe their life could be an example to those who go on and face the challenges of the future. . .
I got the idea from a friend of mine who unfortunately died last Easter Sunday - he was only 17 - and I got to thinking, he never had to see September 11th and see America in a crisis like it is, but maybe he had already done his job, being an example for how those of us who knew him should live. . . esp, through sort of stormy times. I can't adequately explain why I'd feel this way. . . you'd have had to have known this guy - he was truly special. And dying Easter Sunday - it just seemed symbolic . . . and I know that's deep and sort of dark, but it just occurred to me, as many crazy thoughts occur to people when they lose a friend. . . I'm just afraid that it's only a crazy premise that only I can see. . . |
Burt Yaroch Inner circle Dallas,TX 1097 Posts |
Put it together, toss it in the lake, and see if it floats. If nothing else it could be therapeutic for you.
Yakworld.
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Mark the Balloon Guy New user Tampa Bay Florida 27 Posts |
I used to do a lot of Seasoned citizen groups. Most of my act is Comedy Magic.
But I used a story to connect with the group about my grandfather. It could be construed as a sad piece. I do talk about about death and loss. It also is about having Grandparents that are so far away from you. You can see people's eyes well up during it, my eyes do too and my throat stiffens. Give yourself a cleansing pause after it, take a deep breath and wait for the applause. Too many times magicians rush through these things. May I also suggest an acting coach to help you. Good Luck with the bold material. :angel:
Mark Byrne
AKA Mark theBalloon Guy "Bad to theBalloon" |
Aedryan Methyus New user 94 Posts |
Of course it's alright to make people cry. Magic is all about touching on emotions. I have 2 or 3 pieces that I perform that tend to invoke tears. When your able to touch your audience that deeply, you know that they will remember you. Effects like that are the ones you want to close your show with.
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Mandrake New user Germany 66 Posts |
Hmmmm, I just read the first 4 or 5 posts in zthis thread.... But I have to get rid of some thoughts right away:
1) basically, I would also like the idea of bringing up emotions in a variety a concert does. 2) I know that the psychological pattern is not set for that in the situation of a magic show 3) A movie or a song can bring up emotions that we personally did not expect, at the time we started watching or listening. 4)These kind of emotions are mainly coupled with memory, individual memory, that's why a song or a movie will often bring out different emotions in different people at the same time, in the same scene or the same verse. Reasons, why this would not be good in magic. We commonly try (and hopefully succeed) to deceive peoples perceptions when we perform. Therefore, we are makebelievers... As a matter of make believe, our audiences have to rely on experiences they all made, they all were forced to make. We defy the phisical laws, which are the SAME for all of our onlookers. What happens is the Unexpected, the contrary of a COMMON experience. There is personal stories behind every incident leading to this experiences, BUT the result IS the same for all our specs: E.G. people cannot fly, so the guy flying on stage must have supernatural powers, or he wants us to believe he has. What is Humor, why do people laugh? You mainly laugh, once something totally unexpected happens. That is how jokes work, whenever you have expected the punchline before, you will find the joke less funny. The more surprising the end is, the more you laugh. Therefor, I was confused, when people did not applaud, but laugh. Today I am more happy, when they laugh! When they are silent, it means I was TO FAST, nothing else. They could not follw. I caught myself having tears in my eyes, when I saw D.C.'s FLYING the first time.. after a while I found out it was not the effect, it was the scene and the music and the built up drama that caused it. The effect could not do that. I would not have tears, when I would have a chance to see a mere technical rehearsal, without sound and backdrops. Now the common action is astonishment, surprise and wittnesing the unexpected. Your sense are tense you do not want to miss anything, so your mind hardly wanders during a magic show (well, as long as it is good...). even scenes about boy and girl splitting and the some additional magic will not make you struck by emetions, at least not for long, cause in the very next moment you are bound to be awestruck. Even if there is drama, there will be a magic effect near: and this leaves no time for disolving and dilluting yourself in the drame... the emotions and reactions will definitely mix up. So in conclusion, all you get as a maximum is a melange of several levels of emotions. The Astonishment will always be part of it, no matter how sad , how funny or how romantic your patter is.... Zhe laugh of astonishment and the laugh on the comical part will naturally blend best, but every other combination will produce overlays and mixtures were components will (partly) erase each others effect. I know this might be a long speech for asimple fact. Still, I too, would like to have all the drama and comedy and romance available, but I know what I am up to. So try not to be dissapointed, if it does not work as good as you want, It simply can't, otherwise there woul be no songs, no movies, only magic, and that would be very boring. So don't give up, try. And yet, keep on amazing them. Amazement is the thing we can do . And we can do it better than Special FX in a movie, or cool sounds, or cgi animations, we do it live, that's the miracle. Use the acting, and the drama to lead to your effect, to mislead your audience, to play around the wonder, but please don't make them laugh in astonishment on your trick, but at the same time make them cry for the memory of someone you don't know and someone thy miss, That is to farfetched and will go more wrong the bigger your audience is. You force all the focus on yourself, on stage. Don't use that power to embarrass anyone, not a single one. We all might do one time by accident, bad enough, but we'll have to take the risk. Just think about magic and why people do react how they do. And how you would feel, beeing reminde of something you resist to think about right now. I do not want to attack any one that posted in this and similar threads. It is just neccesary for me to tell you my thoughts. My Mom suffers from bon cancer, I cannot help her getting better. All I can do is not making it worse and give her courage to go her way. Walk is what she has to do on her own. Hard enuff. Think about drama befor you employ it.... I once performed an effect to someone who was under psychological care.... just to light him up. The guy knew that I was a magician. That one effect was a bizarre thing ( at least hoe I presented it) I learnt two things from it after the guy told me he was seriously doubting his brain. I changed my patter instantly into something POSITIVE (still dark and mysterious, but with kind of a happy end). AND I learnt to respect the power and the impact that we can have on people. Just try to see it from different angles. Or as a jewish proverb says: "If you want to know how your own shoes fit , try those of you neighbour, first." Due to all respect and with best regards, Mandrake, Germany.
the truth "lies" in the eye of the beholder
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Mandrake New user Germany 66 Posts |
Hello Staff members...
I did not plan to write that long and this serious. It just happened while writing... I know that this might have ended up in th wrong section, but this section started my thoughts.... other sections also have materila, that would lead to the same assumptions for me. Feel free to move this post, to whatever spot feels right for you. You guys are doing a great job! Thanx, Mandrake
the truth "lies" in the eye of the beholder
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Aedryan Methyus New user 94 Posts |
Mandrake,
D.C.'s "Snowing" effect is the one that tends to touch on my emotions. I didn't mean that it's alright to purposely make your audience cry in a malicious manner. I try to do it in more of the context of beauty not sadness or sorrow. And you are right, music and staging play a big part in this but through careful wording and storytelling about real life things that people can relate to, you can embelish upon it imensely. As I mentioned in another post somewhere, I have a friend that closes his show with Pavels super walking knot which tends to invoke tears in his audiences... He actually did this same routine at a bizarre convention and learned that it would actually be considered a bizarre piece simply because it touches on human emotions even though it's a thing of beauty and not morbid or "dark magic". I'm VERY sorry to hear about your mother btw my friend and I hope that all works out for the best. Till next time, Aedryan |
the magic mercat New user Under the sea. 21 Posts |
Eleven years in magic and two routines have made me cry ." The Blue Room" was one of them... I enjoyed being sad, but then again I like to watch magic specials. P.S I like dots..............................................................................
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Ronin Loyal user Martinez,CA 216 Posts |
If we're going to treat magic as an Art form, why not go for the full range of emotions, the same way most other art forms do? If Bizarrists can go for creating terror, why not explore sadness, loss and longing?
As Aedryan said, beauty can move us to tears and it would be wonderful to create that effect as artists. But I think it can be legitimate to create presentations that move audiences to sadness. Sorrow is part of being human. Think of all the examples of theater, film, literature, poetry, and music that evoke feelings of sadness--"Romeo and Juliet," Mozart's "Requiem," "The Raven," "Tale of Two Cities" and "Titanic" come to mind, just to name a few. I've written and performed several magic pieces about lost love, family tragedy, and racial prejudice that went over quite well--in a theatrical setting. Doing this kind of thing successfully depends a lot on the performance context and your character, I think. And I think Mandrake makes a lot of good points about being aware of respecting your audience's personal space.
David Hirata
www.thingsimpossible.com "Life is a combination of magic and pasta." --Federico Fellini |
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